School Holidays..

We spent the school holidays in Halls Gap, The Grampians National Park. Camping is wonderful fun.

Lots of images to upload and lots of history lessons to come. The best fun yet was when we went to the Great Western Rodeo on Good Friday. We all had a ball. It was hot and dusty on that day.

Went to lots of rural places including Stawell and Dimboola to name a few. More updates later on.

Feeling Neglected??

I am so sorry everyone but my life has stepped up a pace and gotten so busy I dunno if I'm Arthur or Marthur..LOL.

Easter is almost here and Mia turns 5 on Wednesday and PT interviews are tomorrow night and gahhhh..too much on. Tomorrow ought to be less hot than today, right now it is a cool 35degrees celcius..at 646pm mind you! Too hot for me thanks.

Anyway, just to let you all know I am still here and am thinking..well, thinking I am neglecting my blog :(

Lots to share very soon ok!

My Day Off ...

This morning was cool, yet the forecast is for a fine and sunny day. The kids got into their Summer uniform with jumpers on top. We walked/rode bikes to school. Half way there I got attacked by a damned Mud lark.... for those who don't know it, it is a mini Magpie..black and White bird. Damned thing..I think it was because I was walking Bondi that it got me. Lifted my hair and all it did!
So, when I walk to get the kids today, I will be armed with a tennis racket! HA!! If that does not work I will wear a hat with eyes painted on the back of it!

Our Day In Ballarat

Yesterday was a public holiday here in Melbourne, Labor Day. So, after I slept a little, I had worked a night shift at work, we caught a country train to Ballarat with the kids. It had been a very hot 37 degrees celsius day, so, being difficult to sleep, it was nice to catch an air conditioned train and just suck in the view for the 70 minute journey. Granted, the scenery was a sad dry and brown one until we got to Ballan and Gordon where there were some lush green fields and half full water damns. The kids were happy to see some fat shiny and healthy looking bulls, and a paddock of calves and some foals with their mummy horses. In one area there was a field of deer.

One we alighted at Ballarat, the station is just lovely. I took some great shots of the station. We then took a history walk through the quiet town. I took more images along Lydiard Street, it is one of the most intact old world real estate I have seen. The lovely old hotels and shops and banks that have the year of construction on top of them in nice engraving or cement work.

The day was still hot and decidedly windy, yet, the wind was cooler than that in Melbourne. Being a public holiday, most of the shops were closed, and well, it was nice to be there out of the rat race in Melbourne.

We took the kids to a shop that had only been opened 6 days previously. The shop is called "The Cold Rock Ice Creamery". It was a lovely little clean ice cream shop. We were served by polite young girls and we got to speak to the brother of the guy that owns the franchise. The kids chose a different ice cream each and then they chose to share little bits with each other to experiment the flavours. Tom got coffee, Nick had a ferrero rochere ice cream, Sarah got what I think was spearmint and choc chip and Mia got a bubblegum with marshmallow..it was blue! Hubby had Rum and Raisin and I got a lovely white sorbet. It went down a treat on such a hot day. The shop has this thing where you choose a flavour, choose a mix and they mash the ice cream together with the mix of lollies on a frozen marble slab..served to you in a cone or a cup. It was great to watch and fun to try.

After this we went for more of a scenic walk around the city centre of Ballarat before making our way back to the station and taking more pictures as we went. It was a great way to spend a day.

This Friday I will share the images I took of Ballarat on the History post :)

It is Friday...

Come over HERE..

Go For Your Life...

Today in our Herald Sun Newspaper there was a lift out magazine that contained something I was really excited about. As a family we do alot of physical activity, from walking, riding, scooter-ing and skipping to and from school....to swimming, bush walking and flying fox riding at the park.

There is a Victorian Government Initiative Campaign to get all families on the move, and healthier and fitter and well, the Newspaper is helping spread the word with this little Lift out and a guide to things you can do in a 30 day period to get the kids and mums and dads up and moving. I know we already do a fair bit of these activities but I plan on filling out our own 30 day challenge of activity and see how we fare.

It does remind me of a campaign from the 1970's called "Life. Be In It". The above 30 second clip reflects some of what that campaign was about. It sure sticks in your head when you grew up with those ads on telly.

I sort of feel like a cheat because I know we will be really active over this coming holidays.... as you will read later on, we are going to Halls Gap again for our vacation..and I cannot wait! Bike riding, rock climbing and bush walking amongst many things we can do.

So, anyone wanting to increase their daily activity out there? GO FOR YOUR LIFE!!!

Lovely weather we are having hey old chappy?

Well, my last post is amazing in contrast to this one. Drizzly and cold one day and well...gorgeous and a bit too hot the next old chum :)
The nights have been coolish and the day today was quite warm. 28 degrees Celsius it got to I believe. The kids played indoors and outdoors alike. When we were outside the sun was definitely biting. Yes, we did slip slop slap :)
Mia, Tom, Sarah and I have a yukky cold and so we have been drinking alot of water and eating lots of fruits with Vitamin C in them.
Tomorrow I plan on going to the Doctor's, after dropping the kids at school, just to get a spot I have been worried about checked out on my leg. No time like the NOW to get it checked out right?
So, after such a lovely weekend I have been quite looking forward to next weekend..a public Holiday long weekend at that..ahhh, I hope the weather is as nice as it has been today...oh, it can rain at night, yet it has got to be sunny in the day :)